This Is for Your Own Good
by demigodstories194
Summary: This is a Divergent AU where all the characters are in high school. Enjoy! (and that's an order)
1. Chapter 1

**this is lucia. i have been kidnapped. save me. -Lucia ... jk shes fine, it was only me that kidnapped her. nothing to worry about. have a nice day! (lucia wont) -Meghan adioz**

The leather belt hits my back, and I cry out in pain. Not loud enough for my neighbors to hear. It's never loud enough.

"Marcus, stop! He's just a child!" My mother calls out from the hallway. She'll just stand there until Marcus is finished beating her son, her only child. She's just as afraid of him as I am. Right before the belt hits my face, I yell out, "Dad! I have school!" Marcus tries to not hit my face if I have school. It is my only defense.

"A seventeen year old child, eh? He should be able to take care of himself. I'm just merely helping him." Marcus sneers. When he finishes about five minutes later, I tear off my shirt. Some skin comes off with it and I wince. I get into the shower and turn the water cold to numb the pain. When I'm done, I only pull on pants to leave my back bare. I have to sleep on my stomach.

In the morning, I take another cold rinse off. I try to put on some cream my mom got me specifically for this purpose. I pull on a grey tee shirt that covers up all of the biggest scars and a pair of jeans. I grab a muffin and hurry out so I don't have to face Marcus. I bike to school.

I look around Norther High, recognizing every single person, and I could probably give you most of their backstories. But if I went up to any random person and asked them what my name was, they would stare at me with a blank face. I am too good at blending in.

Emma and Mason hold hands, Noah plays a video game on his laptop at one of the lunch tables as Jacob and Liam watch him, Sophia flirts with Ethan, and Abigail, Charlotte, and Mia trade gossip, just like every other day. Then I see her. Tris sits with Grace and Olive, like always. She is only sixteen, one of the youngest people in my grade. Her long blonde hair is pulled back into a ponytail, and her grey blue eyes search the lunch room as her friends talk. Her eyes glance over me, but then shoot back. I stupidly make eye contact, and she looks confused. Probably doesn't recognize me. Why should she? I look down at my grey shoes and stay that way until first bell rings. I go through the day like usual, dreading going home.

I told Marcus I signed up for basketball, which buys me an extra hour to myself. I leave my bike at the school and walk around downtown. I walk into Masterpiece, the art shop. It's part museum, shop, and studio. I started taking classes there, and I help clean up afterwards, so I get to do the classes for free. I go straight to the pottery wheel, like always. I throw a lump of clay onto the wheel when the bell on the door jingles. I look up, curious, when I see _her_. Tris walks in with Grace and Olive and walks up to the front desk. I get back to the clay, but still listen in.

"Hi. We heard you had an art class and would like to sign up," Grace says, and I look up. Olive is nodding like crazy but Tris is gazing around the room. I duck again before she can see me, but I still feel her eyes on me for a few seconds, burning into my head. Then, when they finish signing in she sits at the wheel right next to mine. I stand up, pull my finished vase off the wheel, put it on the rack, and leave. I grab my bike from the school and head home.

The front door opens before I touch it and my mom wraps me in a tight hug. Marcus must be in a bad mood. She kisses my forehead, making me blush, and asks, "How was school?"

"Just like every other day," I sigh, "I'm going to my room."

"Be careful," she warns me. I head upstairs, and when I hear my parents bedroom door open, I start speed walking.

"Tobias," Marcus calls. I flinch. "Why are you home a half hour early? Practice is an hour."

I try to think of an excuse, "I, ummm, didn't feel well...so I left…early," I back up into my room, and he follows. "That's a lie. I did not raise my son to be a liar!" He yells, and his fist meets my right cheek. I hold my face, knowing there will be a bruise. I cower as punches me, and I cry out when he hits my back.

The next morning, after I take a shower, I look in the mirror. I recognize the short, dark brown hair, the deep blue eyes, and the spare upper lip and full lower one, but _I_ don't have a bruise on my right cheek and a black eye. I go downstairs and see my mom. Her eyebrows turn down as she frowns and she gently touches the bruise, and I grimace as a white pain goes through my face.

"He said he wouldn't hurt your face!" My mom whisper-shouts. She pulls me into a tight hug. "I'm so sorry."

I chain my bike to the rack and walk into the school, my head down. Nobody even glances my way until I pass Tris's table. She looks up at me as I pass, but then looks back down. I sit at an empty table, but then a boy followed by a girl sit down at my table. He smiles and sticks out his hand for me to shake. "Hey, I'm Zeke. And this is Shauna." I shake it nervously.

"Tobias," I respond.

"Eh. I'm going to call you Four," Zeke says. I give him a questioning look and say, "May I ask why?"

"You have four bruises. One on your leg, one on you arm and two on your face." Shauna answers.

"Ah." At least I don't have to go by the name Marcus gave me. An escape. Zeke looks at me. He must have asked a question.

"What did you ask?"

"I asked, what happened? Did you fall of your bike or something?" He repeats.

"Yeah, actually I did." I lie. The bell rings and Shauna asks, "What class are you going to?"

I answer, "U.S History." She grins. "Same,"

"Today we are doing a partner project which you present at the end of next week," Miss Hall says as she paces at the front of the room. Everyone starts talking at once, and Miss Hall has to whistle to get their attention again, "the partners have already been chosen." Everyone groans. She starts naming names and I turn out until, "Tobias Eaton and Beatrice Prior," I stiffen, but she continues, "you may get with you partners." I stay seated in my desk.

"Hey, Tobias, right?" She asks, apparently unfazed by my bruises.

"Call me Four," I replied, taking to the nickname Zeke and Shauna gave me. I leaned over and started writing our report.

"Like the number?" Tris continued, but also follows my lead.

"Exactly like the number."

"That was you at the art class yesterday, wasn't it?" I stop. She recognizes me?

"Yeah, it was," I confess.

"Why did you leave?"

"Because, I was finished with my vase!" What kind of question was that?

"Oh. Okay. Will you be there tonight?" She asks. I want to ask _why do you care?_ but I resist. Instead I say, "Yeah, I'm guessing." We spend the rest of the period in silence and I think to myself, _what did I say wrong?_

At the end of the day, I head to Masterpiece. When I see Tris sitting at the wheel next to mine without Olive and Grace, I grin and sit down.

"Hey. Nice pot," I say, and she _is_ good, for a beginner. She looks up at me and smiles. "Thanks. This is harder than I thought it would be,"

"It gets easier. Where are your friends?"

She grins some more. "They're shopping. Not a fan of that, so I decided to come here. It's nice having those two girls off my back." Tris laughs and I join her, having one of those rare moments where I feel like an actual kid.

In a more serious tone, she added, "But I still would do anything for them. We have each other's backs."

"Yeah…" I say, not really getting what she means. I just met my first real friends today.

 ****

 **Hope you like this little bit of Divergent AU. That's it for tonight (haha not probably I'm bored), so see y'all! -Meghan (Lucia says hi too)**


	2. Chapter 2

**So it's Meghan here, and this is chapter 2 of our Divergent AU. We're just winging this as of now sooooo… plot what? Yeah,** _ **that's**_ **where we are right now. I'd really appreciate it if you reviewed this story, I need feedback. Is it good, bad, potatoish? Only time will tell- and I guess so will reviews. Make sure to follow and favorite if you enjoy!**

 **Disclaimer: we don't own the Divergent series (sadly), but this work is our own.**

 **And without further ado, the book.**

 _"This is for your own good."_ I wake up in a cold sweat, my blanket tossed to the floor. As if Marcus in person wasn't bad enough, I also had to deal with him in my nightmares. Still, it wasn't hard to decide which one was worse- only one of them gave me real bruises. But the bruises weren't even the worst part. No, it was the dreadful feeling of incompetence to fight back.

Quietly, I tiptoed down the stairs. The third row creaks- why did it creak? It _never_ creaks. Maybe he didn't hear it. Maybe he wasn't up yet. Maybe I could leave the house. Maybe he wouldn't-

"And where are you going?" The question rang through the house with a calm but authoritative voice. I shudder, hating myself for it.

"To school?" I grimace at the sound of my weak voice. I hate being weak around him.

"You were trying to sneak off," he says, sounding sure of himself. His arm is propped up against the doorframe, but I know better than anyone how fast that could change.

"No." _Yes._

"It wasn't like that." _It was exactly like that._

"I just didn't want to wake you." _I just wanted to get away from you._

"Do you think I would lie to you?" _I would lie to you in a heartbeat. And I'm lying to you right now._

Marcus studies my face, searching for a sign of weakness. Any sign, and then bruises would cover my back for a month. Truly, he didn't even need a sign; he just hurt whatever he wanted, with nothing to stop him. Not even my mom was here this time.

"This is for your own good," Marcus says, the calmness never leaving his voice. Not calmness- coldness. You can almost see the frost coming from his lips, shrouding everything he says with an edge of cruelty. He took one step down the stairs. Then two. I fall backwards, and put my hands back to catch my weight. A small smiles dances across his face. Smiles are supposed to be comforting, but his just revealed the true monster he is, with his yellowing teeth.

"This is for your own good," he repeats once more, unbuckling his leather belt. It slides off, and Marcus lets out a tiny laugh at my terrified face expression. However, it doesn't reach his eyes, which are colder than I thought possible.

"This is for your own good. You need to learn how to take care of yourself." This time, he reared back his arm. In a flash, the belt crashes into the right half of my face, and I let out a sob. Marcus steps back slowly, leaving me sprawled out on the cement floor. At least I wasn't bleeding too much. Cringing with pain, I stand up, and head towards the door.

"Goodbye, Tobias." I don't look back.

Walking into the lunch room, I feel comforted for the first time today. There are so many similarities, so many constants. Joey and Molly are making out in the small corner which was like a blindspot from teachers. Sophia and Ethan finally got together, and now they're holding hands and sharing food. Grace, Olive, and Tris sit at their tiny table, laughing. Zeke and Shauna brush hands every so often and blush, making me think there was more going on than what they said.

"God, Four. You look even worse today!" Shauna says when I sit down at our lunch table.

"You aren't one for compliments, are you?"

Zeke laughs, but Shauna's eyebrows wrinkle together.

"But seriously. We just want to make sure you're okay." Shauna's voice is laced with concern.

"But seriously," I say, impersonating her. "I'm fine."

"I could punch you in the gut to make the bruise on your face hurt less," Zeke offers, already raising his fist.

"That's _so_ very kind of you. Really."

"Just doing my job. I'm paid to go up and make people's day better by punching them."

"Yeah, definitely," I say sarcastically. Shauna laughs at us.

"Remind me why I sit here again?"

"Because you love me so much," Zeke supplies, making a kissing face at her.

"Oh shut up!" Shauna's eyes flit around the room, and she leans back in her seat.

"Wow, what a comeback," I say in a solemn voice.

"Oh just...just...urgh! Just shut up!" I grin at her. We may have just met a few days ago, but Zeke and Shauna are easy to talk to. Easier than most people at least.

Glancing around the cafeteria, I notice that most people are getting up to leave. "Okay, I should go… I'll see you guys in a bit?" They both nod, so I stand up, stretch, and walk to the double doors.

"Tobias Eaton?" the teacher calls, her eyes scanning the room.

"Present," I reply to the roll call, my voice sounding monotone and tired.

"Look alive, Four." A quiet but confident voice draws my attention to directly behind me. Beatrice Prior. Tris. Her nickname makes me wonder if there are things in her life she wants to escape from, like there are in mine. That would make a lot of sense, because I haven't been able to figure anything else about her out.

"You sound like Miss Hall," I grumble. "So stop." Tris just shrugs, pulling out a chair next to mine.

"I'm going to guess that you didn't work on our project last night?" I say with a sigh.

"Give me some credit: of course I did." Tris rolls her eyes.

"Good, because I didn't." At that, Tris laughs, but it really wasn't meant to be a joke.

"Whatever. I probably did enough for both of us anyways." Shauna hears that, and turns her head to look at me, mouthing, "Overachiever." I let out a laugh, nodding.

"Haha, funny," Tris says sarcastically, though she couldn't have possibly seen what Shauna said. I guess she is just naturally suspicious- like me.

So," I clear my throat. "The project."

"The project," Tris repeats, now staring into space.

"You can finish the essay, and I can do the presentation. I'll make diagrams and note cards and things like that." Tris shakes her head quickly, coming out of whatever daze she was in.

"Okay, that sounds reasonable."

"Of course it's reasonable. I'm a reasonable person."

"Good, because I'm not," she says in the same flat voice I used earlier.

"Haha, funny," I mock right back. Tris laughs at my falsetto voice, and I immediately stop. It's weird to have people's attention on me. Normally when that happens, I end up with bruises on my back.

Tris and I work on the project until class is over, and a long ring echoes through the halls.

"Did you finish?" she asks me, closing her computer.

"Nope," I reply cheerfully. She groans in an overdramatic fashion, which makes the corners of my mouth turn upward in a smile. Quickly, wanting to get out of this class, I gather my things and stand up.

"Until next time," I say, walking backwards with a little salute in her direction.

 **I hope you enjoyed this painstakingly awful chapter. Remember to follow, favorite, and review (if you like it and all). Until next time! -Meghan (Lucia is a potato now. Sorry for the inconvenience.)**


	3. Chapter 3

**Hey, sorry it's been a couple of days since the last chapter, I (Meghan) have been really busy with summer school (I'm basically a rebel) and _someone_ (cough cough Lucia) refused to help me edit of write. So sorry if this chapter is really bad, I didn't reread it too many times. Please comment, follow, and favorite if you enjoy! It truly means so much to me.**

 **Without further ado,**

"Hey Tris, you okay? You look a little uptight," I say, studying her. Her blue-grey eyes are flying around the room, not grasping any of what she sees, and her fingers won't stop tapping the table.

"I'm fine," she replies, a little too quickly.

Tris and I are sitting in the school library at a table tucked in the back. Everyone around us is talking in hushed voices, giggling under their breaths. Tris glares at anyone who dares to be too loud.

"Look, there's no need to be worried," I start to say.

"No need to be worried? Oh, yeah, we just have to finish a huge project that's due tomorrow. No big deal. Except for the fact that you've written less than three sentences on your half!"

"I've been...busy," I reply vaguely, thinking back to last night. Marcus was mad about something that happened at work, so he took it out on his punching bag. Also known as me. It seems like that sort of thing happens every night now, but all the evenings blur together.

"Yeah, sure."

"I'll get it done!"

"Sure you will," Tris says, rolling her eyes in annoyance. I couldn't really blame her, she didn't know the whole story. Even if she did, I wouldn't want her to pity me because of it. We sit in silence for the next three minutes, and I open and close the presentation on my computer again and again, not in the mood to work.

"Well, Four," she scoffs when she says my name. "Tell me when you finish. Otherwise stay away from me, understand? I don't want to get my hopes up." I nod, and she stands up and leaves, pushing the chair five feet away from the table.

"Yo, Four!" Zeke's voice draws me out of my unpleasant thoughts.

"Hey…" my voice sounds weak, not really there.

"You sound soooo excited to see me."

"Obviously I am. Who doesn't want an obnoxious and loud person calling their name in the cafeteria? Sounds like a dream to me."

"Dreams can be nightmares," a gloomy voice says behind me. Shauna.

"Sorry, I've been spending too much time with my sister Lynn," she laughs a little, and I frown.

"You have a sister?" I ask. I really don't know that much about my friends.

"Yeah… She's in the same grade as your project partner," Shauna says in a strange voice, nudging me. "Tris, right?"

"Yup, that's her name," Zeke answers for me. "Why are you guys partners? You're a senior. She's a sophomore."

"She's an overachiever and placed into that class," I reply, shaking my head.

"Mmkay then. So, what are you guys doing after school? I'm going to go and…" Zeke drones on, and I start to tune him out. Shauna nods enthusiastically at everything he says, so I assume she's doing the same.

"Okay but guys. How does this sound?" Zeke's urgent voice draws my attention back to reality.

"For what?" Shauna and I reply at the same time.

"First of all, that was creepy. Second…why don't people say 'Second of all'?"

"Zeke, focus!" Shauna groans.

"Fine, fine. Secondly, it's to ask out Maria." He points to a girl across the room. She is curvier and softer than most of the girls at our school, so it wasn't strange that Zeke would be attracted to her. Still, she wasn't really my type.

"Zeke, aren't you trying to judge people on more personality than hips?" Shauna says, rolling her eyes.

"Um… Do you really want the answer to that?" Zeke laughs, but Shauna doesn't look amused.

"Fine then. Do whatever you want." Abruptly, she stands up from the table, stomping away.

"Okay then?" Zeke says. "Can you believe that girl?" I shake my head, even though it's not that hard to.

A loud bell pierces the chatter in the cafeteria, and we all get up to leave. I breeze through math class, and then do the same with science. Before I realize it, the end of the day creeps up on me. For most kids, going home is a relief from school, but for me, school is a relief from home.

Slowly, I take a couple steps into my house. It took less time than I would've liked to get here, but there is no going back now. Marcus glances at me from the kitchen, but if he cares that I'm home he doesn't show it.

Walking into my bedroom, I take a few steps back. My mother is sitting on my bed, and I see a tear run down her face. She's the strong one of the two of us, but it's not enough; Marcus is always stronger.

"Mom…" I say quietly, not wanting to startle her.

"Tobias...my son...I'm sorry," she replies, and her face crumples up even more.

"Shhh, it's okay…" I comfort her. Growing up in this household, we both help each other; I've had to grow up much faster than I should have.

"It's...it's not…" Her response startles me. My mom is always the person to keep her head high even in the darkest of moments. This time, Marcus finally broke her.

"Evelyn!" A loud voice calls to us- her- from below. A shudder runs through her back, and she shakes her head violently.

"I can't. I just can't," she sobs. It's unnatural to see her this way: defeated.

"Get down here, my useless wife!" I glare at the door, which unfortunately, is about the most I can do.

"No," my mother whispers, her voice still shaky.

"No." This time her voice is more stubborn. She picks up a statue off of my bed stand, a blue one that she got me once, and marches out of the room. Tentatively, I follow her, making sure not to be too close behind.

"This ends now!" my mother cries out, rearing back her arm to hit Marcus with the sculpture. He brings his arm back and punches her in the head before she can do him any harm, and she falls back to the floor. She's still conscious. He lifts his foot and kicks her head repeatedly.

I nearly scream.

But I don't.

I look down, and see her bloody body sprawled on the floor, a pool of blood building up. I take one step back. Her eyes are glassy. Two steps. Her head is bleeding. Three steps. Her hair is matted red. Four steps. I close my door. My own heavy breaths surprise me: I should have done more. But I didn't.

I am a mistake.

I am a failure.

I am a coward.

 **I hope you enjoyed that! I promise that we're going to be getting more into the plot next chapter, even though I haven't quite figured out what that is. If you have a suggestion just comment it! Your reviews really help! Also, yes, the only reason these ending and beginning messages are so long is so that they add words, and that make me feel like I've done more. XD. -Meghan**


	4. Chapter 4

**Hey, it's Meghan, and I hope you enjoy this chapter of our fanfic! I'm pretty sure it just gets interesting here, so maybe just give it a try? We (finally) have some much needed plot coming in, so enjoy!**

 **Also, this chapter is dedicated to Charms22, thank you so much for commenting! I agree, Marcus really is annoying.**

 **Without further ado, the chapter:**

So I didn't finish my part of the project. I must have a death wish, because if Tris doesn't kill me, my dad sure will. Slowly, I trudge towards the history classroom, willing myself to sink into the wall. It didn't work. When I got there, Tris was standing at the front of the room with her hands tightly clasped around her essay. The sides were all curling inwards.

"Miss," Tris starts to say. "Tobias emailed the presentation to you."

"Actually, I figured that it would demonstrate more of our knowledge if we didn't read from a slide. That's why we'll simply be reciting our presentation from memory."

Miss Hall gives me a little look of confusion, but then a smile comes onto her face. "That's...actually a wonderful idea! Nice initiative. I would have preferred former notice, but this will do," she says, as if surprised I was smart enough to think of that.

"Yeah… So I guess we'll start to talk about…" What was our project?

"World War I," Tris jumps in to save me. I give her a grateful smile, but she's glaring at me.

"We'll start off with the assassination of Archduke Franz Ferdinand of Austria…" Tris rattles off some useless information about a guy who has been dead for a long time, and I insert little comments like, "And the Austrians obviously weren't happy with them killing him," and, "If the demands had been met, some of this could have been avoided!" Everything that comes out of my mouth is obvious by what Tris is saying, but it makes it appear like I know the material as well as she does.

"Tris, I know you are just getting carried away with the flow of the lesson, and it is very interesting, but maybe you could give Tobias a turn…?" Miss Hall puts her hands up in the air like, _Up to you,_ but I know that's not the case.

"Of course," Tris replies sweetly, but when she turns to me she's panicking, biting her bottom lip like crazy and pulling at a loose string in her sweater.

"Well, this next piece of information was written by a German soldier during World War I." I clear my throat, praying no one in here speaks German. "Ich esse jeden Tag gebackene Bohnen. Sie nennen mich Schweinefleisch. Die Nudeln sind lecker. Jeder liebt sie." Everyone in the room goes silent, in awe for a moment. They have no idea I told them about food I ate a year ago.

"Wow, that was amazing. Would you mind telling us a bit about the translation of that lovely quote?"

"Yeah, yeah. So this soldier simply wanted to go home to see his sister, and he felt like the war was going on for no reason."

"Oh, and-" Miss Hall starts to say, but I cut her off.

"And that's all we have! I hope you learned a lot about World War I!" Tris scurries to her desk, nearly falling into the chair, and covers her bright red face by burying it in her hands.

Almost twenty minutes pass before the bell rang, and two people in the back that were sleeping jump up in shock. One of them fell out of their chair and is still laying on the ground. That almost makes getting up worth it. Almost.

Tris walks towards my desk- one of her friends must sit near me. "Hey," Tris says with a grudging tone, though I don't really understand that. "You kinda saved our project, even if you were the one to ruin it in the first place. It was kind of...smart, even though I'm pretty sure I heard, 'They call me pork' in your quote. That's fine though. So…" she sighs. "Thanks." With that, she runs off, her blonde ponytail swinging with every step.

"You're a monster, Zeke," Shauna's loud voice drifts from our table. "Four! Cm'here!" I shuffle my feet a little, partially to annoy her and partially because I'm tired.

"Hurry it up, this isn't the…" she frowns. "What's really slow?"

"The marching band?" I supply, setting my lunch sack on the table. The bench wobbles a bit when I sit down.

"Nah, they're energetic and fun! You're," she narrows her eyes at me, "you."

"What a nasty thing to say? How will Four respond to this blatant disrespect? Tune in next episode to find out!" Zeke says with a clear announcers voice, staring at someplace behind Shauna and me.

"Sorry, talking to the camera is sometimes weird when there's people around."

"So you're saying you normally pretend to be filmed when you're alone? I'd pay to see that!"

"You'd pay for anything! And you say you aren't gullible," he replies, moving his finger back and forth. Zeke and Shauna have such a natural flow to the way that they talk, it makes me jealous sometimes. I wish I had a friend like that.

"I'm not gullible enough to think you're a cool person!" It would be nice to have someone to talk to.

"Oh, that was just low!" Someone who I really felt comfortable around...

"I'm just going to go to the library right now. I guess I'll see you two later?" Without waiting to hear what they say to that, I leave the table without looking back.

"Tobias? Tobias Eaton?" Ms. Bellen, our new Assistant Principal, rushes towards me, a pink Sticky Note in hand.

"Tobias, I'm glad I caught you! Your father called, and you're to go home immediately. I'm sorry, all I know is that it's an emergency," she says, her voice apologetic. I nod; this wasn't the first time something like this had happened. The last time, I ended up with bruises on my stomach. The time before that, my back.

"I'll leave right away," I say reluctantly. She gives me a relieved smile.

Quietly, I gather my things and walk out the double doors of the school. One of the doors has a crack in it, from when someone shot at us. They never fixed it, not completely. It is if it was there to remind us that none of us are safe, not forever. Or maybe that's just what it means to me.

I walk slowly, cherishing these moments of solitude. It is in these moments that I can forget who I am, forget who's son I am.

Then I hear a siren. I run. When I make it to my house, I stop dead in my tracks. An unconscious woman lays on the pavement. My mother. They load her onto a stretcher with a blanket. They zip the blanket up over her body and my mind swirls. Not a blanket. A bag. Not unconscious. Dead.

My mother is dead.

My mother, who raised me from when I was young, protected me against the wrath of Marcus, stayed strong even in the darkest of hours, is dead.

"Who could've done this?" I whisper to myself, a tear sliding down my cheek.

"Who could've done this?!" I say louder, angrier.

I turn and look into dark blue eyes.

The eyes of my father.

The eyes of a murderer.

 **Well we (and by that I mean Meghan because Lucia is lazy and doesn't do any work) finally got to the plot! Hopefully this chapter was more interesting than the others, I think it was at least. Anyways, please** **review/** **comment, favorite, and follow if you enjoy! Seeya next time! -Meghan**


	5. Chapter 5

**Hey guys, I'm back after a while of not posting. I'm sorry if anyone was disappointed that there wasn't a new chapter out, but anyways, enjoy!**

 _It's not true. It's not true. It's not true._ It's true.

"Tobias, I'm really sorry." Zeke told me that one.

"That is just awful." Shauna supplied that bit.

"I'm sorry for your loss." Those words I hear at every corner I turn, every street I cross, every classroom I enter. Everyone knows what happened.

Still, no words came from my father, the murderer.

I just want to forget.

 _My mother's body lays on the ground, my breathing gets heavier, a lump settling in my throat. My eyes flick around the room, trying to settling on anything but the body. Anything._

"Hey…" Tris's simple word settle upon me slowly as I sit alone. It surprises me, but I don't jump.

"I'm not any good with comforting words, but I heard what happened." She looks so uncomfortable, I start to laugh.

"So you came, not to tell me that you were sorry for me, but just that you acknowledge that she died?" I laugh even harder, but it morphs into a type of sob. That catches both of us off guard.

"It sounds a lot worse when you put it that way!" she replies stubbornly.

"Whatever you say, I can't talk right now."

Tris nods a little, but then she shakes her head vigorously.

"No, you will not trick me into leaving you alone. It may feel like you just want to be by yourself, but I know: you need to talk to someone. Let it out."

I laugh again, but there's no humor in it. "You have no idea what I'm going through. You're mom wasn't murdered, and by your dad no less-" I stop, realizing where I went wrong.

"Your dad… killed your mom?" Tris's voice starts to shake, and I think she's crying. However, when I look over at her, she's keeping in a laugh. She really doesn't know how to deal with someone who's upset.

"I'm glad to see that my pain is enjoyable for you. Would it be even better if I cried?" At least she isn't taking me seriously. This way, my slip up won't hurt anyone.

"I'm sorry, but you know you sound crazy, right? Marcus wouldn't do that, even if he is kind of rude sometimes." Tris says.

"You don't know him like I do."

" _Marcus! Stop it. He's only a child!" my mother screams, crying violently, her whole body shaking. She protects me when no one else can._

" _He's a child? That's true…" Marcus snarls._

" _He's only a child… For God's sake, Marcus! He's your own flesh and blood!" She cries again, louder this time._

" _You're not," he says, his voice suddenly thoughtful. But not in the way that you get when you're planning a project. No, it's the way you get when you plan who to attack._

" _N...no...no…" My cracked lips barely manage one word, and even then no one can hear me._

"Tobias," Tris says, not laughing this time around. Finally.

"Look, if you really think it's your dad I'll believe you." She firmly nods, probably trying to assure herself more than me.

"Fine, do what you want," I say gruffly, getting up to leave.

"I'm not doing what I want to do. I'm doing what I have to do because I care about you."

"Why?"

"Why what?"

"Why do you care about me?"

The painstaking moments of silence seemed to take forever.

"Honestly, I don't know. Sorry about that insanity. I guess I'll see you in class." She spits the words out of her, trying to get rid of them.

Sometimes it feels like I'm trying to ruin everything good I have.

—

"Tobias, my son." I wake up with my blanket rolled into the corner of my bed, half of it dangling towards the floor.

"Father," I say to the man standing in there threshold of my door. My voice sounds muffled with sleep, and I know that I must look like a mess; I was crying last night.

"I'm… I'm sorry…" A few tears fall down his left cheek. His greying hair is creased, like he fell asleep at his desk. Marcus looks much older than he should.

"I'm sorry too, Marcus." The words tumble out of my mouth before I thought about how he deals with liars. Strangely, he just nods his head, a couple more times than would be considered normal. He takes a step closer, and raises his arm. For a moment I think he is going to hit me, but he moves in for a hug. Still, he seems to think better of it and backs away.

"I know this is hard for you. It's hard for me too," Marcus whispers, leaving my room.

"That was… strange…" I say quietly after he is out of ear range.

Maybe my father isn't the murderer of my mother after all.

Or maybe I just don't want him to be.

 **So that was a short and terrible chapter, what else is new? I hoped you liked it either way, don't forget to favorite, follow, and review! -Meghan**


	6. Chapter 6

**Legit wrote this during band camp soooo sorry if it's kind of...choppy? I mean all the chapters are, I need to get better at that, but I hope you enjoy anyways!**

"Aye, Four!" Paul, a young man with scruff on his face, says as he washes little splotches of clay and paint off of them. "I haven't seen you around here lately."

I nod my head slowly. "Yeah, I've been pretty...busy." That is such an understatement.

"Eh? Okay. Well here's a rag, I haven't had time to clean off your station." He says it as though it was specifically reserved for me, and not something anyone could pay to use.

I take the damp rag with a limp hand, but the moment the familiar fabric touches my skin, I instantly feel better. Some things can just do that to you.

A small bell rings at the front of the room. A new customer.

"Thought I might find you here." Tris.

"Really," I start. "That was completely luck. I haven't been here in weeks."

"Well," she shrugs, and I expect her to say more, but she just stops.

"You found me now, so what do you want?" My voice sounds accusatory even to me.

"Can't a friend visit a friend?"

"Yes." I wring out my rag over the sink. "But we're not friends."

"Ooh, That one hurt." She plops herself down on one of the swiveling chairs, and we sit in silence for the next two minutes.

"You're a really awkward person," Tris says suddenly.

"I'm not that one that sought you out!" I complain, shaking my head.

Tris opens her mouth, but then closes it just as fast. She runs a hand over her cheek, wiping off an invisible mark.

"We should be friends." Where the hell did this come from? Was she just mad that I said we weren't friends?

"Huh?" I say in shock.

"I'm mean, let's be honest, both of us could use an ally. It's not like we have friends to spare."

"Hey-"

"I'm not saying you have to verbally agree with me, but we both know it's true." Yes, it is. And now that I've been so distant lately, I'm drifting farther and farther away from Zeke and Shauna.

I sway back and forth. "Either way, it's not like I can just choose to be friends with you. It doesn't work like that."

"It's not like it'll be easy for me! Besides, I kind of phrased that badly. Allies, at least." So she went from caring about me to not being able to be friends with me. Wow.

I glare at the wall, willing myself to just disappear. Why do I have to be stuck in this position?

"Look, Tris. I'm going to be perfectly honest with you. I don't even know why you decided to come up to me today. But I think we should just go in our own directions. We were partners for a school project. Great. Now we have no reason to talk. So…. bye, Tris." She squints her eyes, confused, and maybe a little bit shocked. I know I am, why did I say it so meanly? That wasn't like me.

"Fine. You're clueless, you know."

"I never even saw that movie!" I call after her as she kicks the front door open.

"That makes no sense, idiot." That's fair.

Paul stares at me from across the room, a finished pot in his hand. "So, new ex-girlfriend?" I shake my head immediately.

"Yeah, okay. Well if you're done with that whole thing can you please finish cleaning up that station. I don't know if you're going to have time to make anything today after all. I forgot we're closing early today, who knows why." He scratches his brown hair, tilting his head to the right. I nod, because that is what's expected of me.

I do a have-finished job tiding the wheel, and leave before Paul can say anything.

"Tobias!" My mother greets me as I open the front door. Her warm arms wrap around my body, pulling me into a tight hug.

"How was your day?" she says with a smile.

"Tobias? Is that you?" I open my eyes, alone in the entryway once again.

"Y-yeah." My voice shakes, and an ache runs through my body. The pain isn't as sharp as it was those first couple of days, but now it's like someone is taking a needle and stabbing me over and over. Sometimes I start to feel okay, but sometimes, it's as though everything comes back to me in the tenfold.

Marcus walks out of his study and looks me up and down. His hair is greasy, and his chin is scruffy with the start of a beard. His clothes also look suspiciously similar to what he was wearing three days ago.

"Look, Son." He takes a step towards me, and I grimace out of habit. Marcus winces at that.

"Tobias." All he says is my name. That's all he needs to say. It contains sadness, anger, and regret all in one word.

"I know." And I did. But while I feel guilty for this even crossing my mind, I can't help but wonder why I'm comforting him, when all he's given me is suffering.

"I miss your mother." We all do.

"But I also miss you." What? You never lost me. I cock my head, not understanding.

"I miss how we used to be happy together." I can't help but laugh at that. The time when we used to be happy together passed years ago. He lost his chance for that.

He lost his chance to be a good father.

"I'm going upstairs now." I don't ask, I tell.

"Tobias, wait!" I'm already halfway to my room.

And I don't look back.

 **Ooh I'm sorry for the sudden ending but, uh, I kinda got bored writing and was like "nah this seems perfect." Anyways, I hope you liked this chapter! The next one will probably be out either in two days or two weeks, who knows. Make sure to review and follow and potato and anything else you do? Idk. Byeee -Meghan**


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